Wall Street veteran sees crypto outperforming AI stocks

What happened

Jordi Visser, founder of Visser Labs and former managing director at Morgan Stanley, argues that cryptocurrencies could deliver superior returns compared to artificial intelligence stocks. Speaking with Cointelegraph, Visser outlined a thesis centered on how AI agents will create structural demand for crypto payments and tokenized assets that extends beyond the semiconductor and software companies powering the AI infrastructure itself.

Visser's perspective reflects a shift in how institutional investors view the comparative opportunity between two competing asset classes. While AI stocks have surged dramatically, he contends that explosive gains in that sector are becoming increasingly difficult to replicate. His own portfolio adjustments underscore this thinking: until August, Visser held only Bitcoin, Ether and Solana, but has since expanded into a broader basket of tokens that includes privacy-focused projects.

The Wall Street veteran frames AI agents as analogous to smartphone technology or the App Store ecosystem for cryptocurrency. In his view, these agents will enable users to instruct software to execute trades and financial transactions on their behalf, driving activity across tokenized assets and crypto payment systems. Visser maintains an equally weighted index of 42 tokens and four publicly traded stocks that he says has outperformed Bitcoin since June.

Why it matters

The contrast Visser draws between AI stocks and cryptocurrencies reflects genuine shifts in market dynamics and valuation pressures. AI infrastructure spending has decoupled from current revenue generation, with major companies like Oracle spending significantly more on capital expenditures than they generate from operating cash flow. Meanwhile, the 100-stock AI portfolio Visser tracks has become more volatile than Bitcoin on a 126-day rolling basis, a signal that the sector faces heightened risk. His argument suggests that as AI stock returns moderate and capital redeployed, cryptocurrency could attract institutional and retail attention based on its role as a utility layer for AI-driven financial activity rather than purely speculative demand.

Background

Visser's career spans three decades in finance, including positions as chief investment officer at Weiss Multi-Strategy Advisers and current role leading 22V's AI Macro Nexus Research. His commentary arrives at a moment when the crypto market experienced considerable headwinds earlier in 2026 as investor attention concentrated on AI opportunities. By mid-May, Bitcoin was down 10.85% for the year while Ether had declined approximately 25.86%, as capital flowed toward chipmakers and AI software companies. Visser himself reduced exposure to memory chipmaker Micron in mid-May after concluding that hedge funds and retail investors had crowded into the AI trade, creating unfavorable risk-reward conditions.

The AI sector saw extraordinary revenue growth during this period. Microsoft reported in April that its AI business was generating revenue at an annualized rate of $37 billion, more than double the prior year. Micron's fiscal second-quarter revenue nearly tripled to $23.86 billion in its March report. However, these gains have not insulated AI stocks from valuation pressure as the market reassesses whether current prices reflect realistic growth trajectories and the actual profitability of AI-related businesses.

What to watch

Visser identifies potential downside risks to his bullish crypto thesis, primarily a severe AI sector downturn that could drag broader equity markets lower. He acknowledges such a scenario would likely pressure cryptocurrencies as well, potentially retesting recent lows, though he does not believe it would derail the bull market entirely. Additionally, retail sentiment indicators matter significantly to his outlook; Visser watches Dogecoin as a gauge of retail enthusiasm returning to the market, viewing retail participation as essential fuel for sustaining a broader rally across digital assets.

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